bigglesfandomcom-20200215-history
The Air Adventures of Biggles (radio series)
The Air Adventures of Biggles was a radio series which was produced and broadcast in Australia between 1945 and 1954. The series was first produced in Adelaide by AWA (Amalgamated Wireless Australasia Ltd). In 1949, production was moved to Sydney from the 209th episode onwards and ran on for a total 1256 episodes. Each episode would run for about 15 minutes and about 30-40 episodes would be needed to narrate one complete story. Information about some episodes is quite scarce, particularly the episodes produced in Adelaide. The radio stories would almost certainly have been based on the Biggles books of W. E. Johns, albeit with some artistic licence. Which books they are can sometimes be readily inferred from the titles given to the radio stories. Hence In the Blue is obviously Biggles in the Blue and Bawn's Curse is most likely Biggles Flies West. But at other times, which books were the source can be rather puzzling. What, for example, is the tantalizing Ladies in Danger? A close look also suggests that some stories were repeated. So Biggles Flies North is Episode 0287-0313. But Arctic Airways (Episode 0833-0868) must be based on the same book too, surely. In several cases, the interwar and WW2 stories have been transposed to a postwar Air Police setting. This happened for Pearls of Vanakai and Deal with a Pirate, and most likely happened with the others. Episodes Produced in Adelaide Spitfired Parade (Ep 0001-0014) Biggles Sweeps the Desert (Ep 0015-0034) Biggles Air Commodore (unknown) Episodes Produced in Sydney Pearls Of Vanakai (Ep 0209-0238) Based on Biggles in the South Seas but with the timeframe transposed to a postwar Air Police setting, and with a fifth member of the team, Pat Kendall. Biggles Flies South (Ep 0239-0265) Secret Agent (Ep 0266-0286) Biggles Flies North (Ep 0287-0313) Turncoat (Ep 0314-0338) Biggles In Borneo (Ep 0339-0365) Sergeant Bigglesworth C.I.D. (Ep 0366-0384) Biggles Second Case (Ep 0385-0407) Biggles In The Jungle (Ep 0408-0433) Biggles Hits The Trail (Ep 0434-0458) Secret Weapon (Ep 0459-0484) Could this be based on Biggles in the Orient? Paradise Valley (Ep 0485-0511) Most likely based on Biggles Takes a Holiday. Starry Crown (Ep 0512-0534) Has to be based on Biggles Breaks the Silence. Bawn's Curse (Ep 0535-0562) Has to .be based on Biggles Flies West. Scourge Of The Orochons (Ep 0563-0587) Most likely based on Biggles Gets His Men. Combined Ops (Ep 0588-0606) Biggles' Combined Operation was not written until 1959, so that is definitely not the source here. Atomic Papers (Ep 0607-0624) Big Game (Ep 0625-0653) Most likely Biggles Hunts Big Game. Ladies In Danger (Ep 0654-0673) What can this be? A Biggles adaptation of Worrals of the Islands? The Devil Drug (Ep 0674-0699) This appears to have plot elements from Biggles Fails to Return but the setting is not Monaco and that source had nothing to do with drugs. Yet characters like Francois Budette and Madame Ducoste appear. The White Prophet (Ep 0700-0720) Most likely based on Biggles Works It Out. Treasure Of The Incas (Ep 0721-0749) The next story talks of the Air Police coming back from Brazil. So this one was most likely based on The Cruise of the Condor but transposed to an Air Police setting. Deal With A Pirate (Ep 0750-0783) This was based on Biggles Delivers the Goods but transposed to a postwar Air Police setting. Desert Broom (Ep 0784-0832) At the end of Deal with a Pirate, Raymond mentions that some aircraft had disappeared while enroute between Sudan and Nigeria. That, it will be recalled, was the premise of Biggles Sweeps the Desert, so this looks like the source of Desert Broom (the name is suggestive) but obviously transposed to a postwar Air Police setting. Arctic Airways (Ep 0833-0868) And this a remake of Biggles Flies North? The Freedom Party (Ep 0869-0930) Lost Oasis (Ep 0931-0970) This could be a remake of Biggles Flies South. The Iron Curtain (Ep 0971-1023) This was based on Biggles Follows On. The Black Raider (Ep 1024-1047) This was based on Biggles and the Black Raider. At the end of this story, Pat Kendall is seriously wounded and left behind in a hospital in Juba. Her character does not appear in subsequent stories. The Black Peril (Ep 1048-1086) At the end of the last episode of The Black Raider, Biggles and Bertie (with Algy and Ginger in the plane following), are on the way back to England from Africa. Over Norfolk, they have to make a forced landing because of thick fog. It will be recalled that this is the opening scene of The Black Peril. So this story is almost certainly an adaptation of the original interwar book transposed to an Air Police setting. In The Blue (Ep 1087-1123) This was based on Biggles in the Blue. In the Gobi (Ep 1124-1164) Most likely based on Biggles in the Gobi. The Enchanted Island (Ep 1165-1178) Most likely based on one or several of the stories from Biggles - Charter Pilot. Category:Derivative works Category:Derivative series